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Albanian Catholic Bulletin
guided by the principle of freedom of conscience, so that the people may be persuaded
Gaspër Thaçi, Archbishop of Shkoder and Primate
of the Catholic Church in Albania
by their own experience about the futility of religion and
the harm it does to the socialist society."(19)
Our Party has at all times waged its struggle against
religion in terms of an encompassing world-outlook, so as
to heighten the awareness of the masses ideologically, politically, educationally and culturally, until they themselves, witnessing the construction of socialism in Albania,
are convinced of the necessity to liberate themselves spiritually from the shackles of religion. Indeed, the very goal
of socialism is to liberate the working masses from every
sort of exploitation and deception, including the total liberation of their consciousness from the religious ideology.
Then, too, while consistently respecting the principle of freedom of conscience, our socialist state could not
allow the church to be used as a place for deceiving the
masses, and engaging in politics against the regime, since
that was against the law. In fact, the priests enjoyed all the
legal rights pertaining to the citizens of Albania. But like
all other citizens of the republic, they were not immune or
unaccountable for their political acts. Comrade Enver
Hoxha has pointed out: "Their religious function ought not
to be confused with their political convictions, since they
are two different things. Every person who violates the
laws of the republic is accountable before a court of law, be
he a priest, a hodja, or a lay person. To punish a priest or a
hodja as they deserve, because they have broken the law,
does not in the least mean that one is fighting religion or persecuting
the church." <20>
Acting in the name of the government, Enver Hoxha himself
made it clear to the representatives of the two largest (Catholic) dioceses, Gaspër Thaçi and Vinçenc Prendushi, that they should occupy
themselves only with their religious duties. Comrade Enver Hoxha
further notes that both of them rubbed their hands and formally said
that the stand of our government was correct, and pledged to orient
themselves toward the Albanian nation. But in reality they continued
their espionage activity for the Vatican and imperialism, in opposition
to the people's government. That is why the dictatorship of the proletariat punished them, just as it punished all others who, under the cloak
of religion, raised their hand against the people.
Certainly the Vatican was not happy over the "loss" of its most
faithful agents in Albania. Hence, it tried to rise to their defense and
protest against their condemnation by the people's government. A case
in point is the din it raised in 1973 over the punishment of Shtjefen
Kurti. In order to make its version of the incident more credible, the
Vatican portrayed him as "a saint" who was executed by the Communists for the sole reason that he had allegedly baptized an infant. Two
42
Reverend Shtjefen Kurti

Albanian Catholic Bulletin
guided by the principle of freedom of conscience, so that the people may be persuaded
Gaspër Thaçi, Archbishop of Shkoder and Primate
of the Catholic Church in Albania
by their own experience about the futility of religion and
the harm it does to the socialist society."(19)
Our Party has at all times waged its struggle against
religion in terms of an encompassing world-outlook, so as
to heighten the awareness of the masses ideologically, politically, educationally and culturally, until they themselves, witnessing the construction of socialism in Albania,
are convinced of the necessity to liberate themselves spiritually from the shackles of religion. Indeed, the very goal
of socialism is to liberate the working masses from every
sort of exploitation and deception, including the total liberation of their consciousness from the religious ideology.
Then, too, while consistently respecting the principle of freedom of conscience, our socialist state could not
allow the church to be used as a place for deceiving the
masses, and engaging in politics against the regime, since
that was against the law. In fact, the priests enjoyed all the
legal rights pertaining to the citizens of Albania. But like
all other citizens of the republic, they were not immune or
unaccountable for their political acts. Comrade Enver
Hoxha has pointed out: "Their religious function ought not
to be confused with their political convictions, since they
are two different things. Every person who violates the
laws of the republic is accountable before a court of law, be
he a priest, a hodja, or a lay person. To punish a priest or a
hodja as they deserve, because they have broken the law,
does not in the least mean that one is fighting religion or persecuting
the church." <20>
Acting in the name of the government, Enver Hoxha himself
made it clear to the representatives of the two largest (Catholic) dioceses, Gaspër Thaçi and Vinçenc Prendushi, that they should occupy
themselves only with their religious duties. Comrade Enver Hoxha
further notes that both of them rubbed their hands and formally said
that the stand of our government was correct, and pledged to orient
themselves toward the Albanian nation. But in reality they continued
their espionage activity for the Vatican and imperialism, in opposition
to the people's government. That is why the dictatorship of the proletariat punished them, just as it punished all others who, under the cloak
of religion, raised their hand against the people.
Certainly the Vatican was not happy over the "loss" of its most
faithful agents in Albania. Hence, it tried to rise to their defense and
protest against their condemnation by the people's government. A case
in point is the din it raised in 1973 over the punishment of Shtjefen
Kurti. In order to make its version of the incident more credible, the
Vatican portrayed him as "a saint" who was executed by the Communists for the sole reason that he had allegedly baptized an infant. Two
42
Reverend Shtjefen Kurti